


Golden (The Problem Children)

by KakushiMiko, tatemshope



Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Iron Man - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternative Universe - Brainwashed, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad guys die, Cap_Ironman Reverse Bang Challenge, Child Abuse, Hydra Brainwashed Maximoff Twins, Hydra Brainwashed Tony, Identity Porn, M/M, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-14
Updated: 2016-06-14
Packaged: 2018-07-15 02:56:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7203596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KakushiMiko/pseuds/KakushiMiko, https://archiveofourown.org/users/tatemshope/pseuds/tatemshope
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve and Tony are high school best friends, when Tony's parents are killed and the whole world thinks Tony was killed with them.  In reality, Tony's held prisoner and slowly brainwashed into one of Hydra's most skilled agents.  During that same time, Steve's dedicated his life to making the world a better place, in memory of the friend he lost.</p><p>When Steve and Tony's objectives collide, will the truth be enough to save them both?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Golden (The Problem Children)

**Author's Note:**

> "Half way through this story medical issues forced me to give it up. OrbingArrow stepped in as a pinch hitter and if there's anything you don't like about this story it is me and all of the best parts are her." ~Tate
> 
> "That was embarrassing but I promised to leave it." -Arrow
> 
> (Mind the tags. There are a few things in here that could be upsetting but we did try to tag them all.)

_Some fairy tales have happy endings. The old ones didn’t. And it’s the old ones, Tony likes best._

**\--- Freshman year ---**

Steve and Tony are natural friends. Tony’s the smallest kid in their class, because he’s 2 years younger, and Steve’s the second smallest. Their names sit right together in alphabetical order, too, (Rogers then Stark) so they sit next to each other in almost every class. It makes being a Freshman not so terrible once they meet.

To Tony, Steve’s the best thing that could have ever happened to him. To Steve, Tony’s one of many good things in his life. That’s okay with Tony though. He’d rather have half his friend’s time than no time at all.

And there’s always gym class.

Tony always walks the track while the bigger kids play sports. He’d gotten hurt at the beginning of the year and his mother had raised a stink and the school hadn’t wanted to deal with a lawsuit so this was the solution.

Steve couldn’t run from one base to the next without needing his inhaler so he was also relegated to walking the track.

Which meant no matter what else was going on at school, for one hour a day they had uninterrupted them time. It was the best part of Tony’s day, every day.

“You wanna come to my house after school?” Tony asked. He asked every Friday.

“You sure your ma isn’t going to mind?”

“Just me and Jarvis tonight,” Tony said. “Mom and dad are going out of town. You could spend the whole weekend if you want.”

“Seriously?” Steve asks. “That’d be amazing. Mom’s working doubles and we've got to wait till the end of the month for more groceries. If I have to eat one more Cup O' Noodles I'm going to turn into one."

"No cups of noodles at our house," Tony agrees. He only knows what they are because he's been to Steve's a few times and that's what he and Steve microwaved for dinner. Tony actually thought they were pretty good, but anything would be gross if you had to eat it every day.

"I figured I was just going to be sitting around bored all weekend," Steve continues. "Bucky’s got a football tournament. You're really sure your parents won't mind?”

Bucky is Steve’s neighbor and Tony’s nemesis. Not that anyone knows Bucky’s a nemesis. Tony tries to be nice to him for Steve. It’s just... Bucky is everything Tony isn’t. Tall, funny, popular, athletic.

Tony’s mom promises him he’s going to be all those things one day. That day cannot come soon enough.

“My parents will never know. You want to watch Bucky play?” Tony asks. “Jarvis will drive us wherever we want to go.”

“Yessssss,” Steve agrees. “That’d be awesome. Maybe we can make some signs tonight. I know where the cheerleaders keep their banner supplies.”

Tony laughs. “That’s about as close to cheerleaders as we’re ever going to get, so sure. Let’s make signs.”

They have so much fun painting that night and then cheering the next day, Tony forgets to be jealous of Bucky all weekend.

**\--- Sophomore year ---**

Things start out great. Tony and Steve have almost every class together. The only periods that are flip-flopped are gym and study hall and Tony goes to the office and sweet talks the secretaries until he gets it righted. Now he and Steve are together all day.

Bucky plays football again and every day after school, Tony and Steve sit on the bleachers and watch him practice. He and Tony are friends now too. Maybe not the best of friends, but enough that Tony no longer thinks of him as Bad News Bucky.

At least until the day when Bucky’s the one who delivers some bad bad news, the first afternoon of winter break.

Tony’s sitting in the living room reading while his mom plays piano, when there’s an urgent knock at the door. Tony’s the one who answers it, and it’s Bucky, covered in blood and completely out of breath.

“We were walkin’ here and a truck hit a patch of ice. It hit Steve and tipped and there was all this blue goo and--” Bucky takes in a shuddery breath. “The ambulance took him to the hospital but they wouldn’t take me. He was bleeding. Your house was the closest.”

By now Tony’s mom has come to the door too, and she takes control as Tony leans against the wall and tries not to cry. His mom gives Bucky a long hug, and offers to drive them both to the hospital. It’s times like this when Tony remembers why having a mom’s such a good thing. 

He and Bucky can only go back one at a time, and his mom sits with them and waits, and then when Steve’s mom gets there, neither of them can go back and Tony’s mom takes them home.

It’s on the way home that Bucky mentions the truck that hit Steve said Stark Industries on the side. Tony feels terrible. His mom says she’ll make sure Howard knows and she’ll call Steve’s mom yet again to tell her they’ll take care of all of his medical bills.

Tony knows, even when his family isn’t responsible, somehow they are _always_ responsible.

“You want to spend the night?” Tony asks Bucky once they’re out of the car. “We could make Steve get well cards. He always like stuff best when we do it ourselves.”

“I’ve got football conditioning in the morning,” Bucky says, without looking at him. “But I’ll see you around.”

Bucky never comes out and says it, but in the weeks that follow, Tony gets the feeling that Bucky blames him for what happened to Steve. If Tony didn’t live in a different neighborhood they wouldn’t have been walking alongside the road. They’d have been safe in their apartment building, where no big trucks were ever going to hurt them. And if Stark Industries didn’t exist, that truck wouldn’t have been there either.

It’s all Tony’s fault.

It’s fine though. Tony doesn’t need Bucky because Tony has Steve.

At first Steve had all the regular bad injuries, plus some weird stuff wrong with him from the goo. Tony finds his dad in Steve’s hospital room a few times, along with his Uncle Obie and Doctor Erskine, another doctor who works for Stark Industries. A medical doctor, not a doctor of engineering like Howard.

They’re helping Steve in one way and Tony makes it his mission to help Steve in another. He starts inventing things to make Steve’s life easier. At first they’re simple machines like a grabby device for things that are far away and special grippers for his art pens. But then Tony gets a little more sophisticated. He makes a special remote control robot that can go get Steve things, and a little flying camera Steve can steer around so he can see things outside his room.

All these things make Steve smile and that’s good because Steve is in a lot of pain. He’s healing _different_. Healthier. It’s weird, seeing him look bigger every time Tony sees him, but while Steve’s confined to bed it’s not that big a deal. When it’s time for him to start trying to walk again, that’s when Tony can really tell something has changed.

Tony’s happy for his friend, but he’s jealous, too. Instead of Steve and Tony looking like a matched set, now it’s Steve and Bucky who could pass as brothers. Steve doesn’t need his inhaler anymore. Steve doesn’t need to walk the track. By spring, Steve’s playing _sports_.

He and Tony still sit next to each other in almost every class, but now every day after school, Tony’s in the bleachers alone, watching Steve and Bucky practice sports together with their teammates.

It’s not nearly as much fun.

**\--- Junior Year ---**

“Are you coming to my game tonight?” Steve asks.

He’s smiling brightly. He is always smiling these days. He’s very popular. He doesn’t really seem to notice the extra attention, but Tony does. And there’s a new kid-- Brock Rumlow-- who wants to make Steve his new best friend and alphabetical order puts him between Tony and Steve when they sort by last name.

Brock is an ass. He’s always mean to Tony and he trips him or shoves him when Steve’s not looking. Tony’s barely paying attention to Steve’s question, once Brock walks up to join them in the hall.

“I can’t,” Tony lies. “Homework.”

“You always finish your homework in study hall,” Steve points out.

“How would you know?” Tony asks. “You spent all off Study Hall talking to Peggy Carter. You didn’t look at me once.”

“Awwwww, did you hurt Tony’s feelings?” Brock asks Steve. “You going to cry cause you've got a crush on Steve and he isn't crushing back?”

“Fuck off,” Tony says.

He doesn’t swear all that often because Steve doesn’t and Steve’s who he talks to the most, but Brock brings out all of Tony’s worst qualities.

“What did you say to me?” Brock demands.

He shifts his stance and he’s a lot bigger than Tony so it would be intimidating if Tony wasn’t already annoyed.

“I said, fuck off,” Tony quips. “Want me to say it in French so we can count this as tutoring?”

It’s not even that mean of a thing to say. Brock sucks in that class, and Tony’s practically fluent. But it’s mean enough that Steve doesn’t automatically take Tony’s side.

“Guess I’ll see you tomorrow then,” Steve dismisses Tony.

“Or not,” Tony says. “Maybe you won’t see me at all.”

“Oh, we can all wish,” Brock laughs.

He gives Tony a shove then, and Tony spills his books on the ground. Steve leans down to help him pick them up and Tony pushes him away.

“Just leave me alone,” Tony growls.

“What’s wrong? Steve demands. “Why are you being so weird?”

“I’m not the one being weird,” Tony snaps. “I’m still the same. You’re the one who turned into some science experiement over night.”

Now that is a nasty thing to say. Tony wants to take it back immediately. This time it’s Steve who gives Tony a shove to the shoulder.

“In that case I think you can pick these up yourself.”

Tony waits for their footsteps to fade away before he does. He manages not to cry all the way out of the school though his eyes are burning furiously. He gets home and no one’s there. That’s weird, because usually at least Jarvis would be waiting for him.

He gets himself a snack and sits at the kitchen table to eat it alone. Still the house stays empty. When there are keys in the door an hour later, Tony jumps up in relief.

It’s Obie. Obie’s holding one of the robots Tony’d made for Steve.

“Did you build this all by yourself?” Obie asks.

Tony nods. “Where’s mom and dad?”

“There’s been an accident. You need to pack a bag.”

“Where’s Jarvis?” Tony asks.

“There was an accident. Pack a bag,” Obie snaps.

Obie’s been a family friend for years so even though something doesn’t feel right, Tony does as he’s told. When he leaves the house he has no idea it will be the last time he sees the place for many, many years.

**\--- A New Year ---**

Tony’s parents and Jarvis are dead. Tony’s basically a slave. It’s not been a good few months.

Tony figures out pretty quickly that Obie killed his parents. He also figured out quickly that he’d been spared because Obie thinks Tony might be able to come up with some good ideas for Stark Industries that Obie can pass off as his own.

When Tony provides Obie with good ideas he gets food and blankets and an occasional hot shower. When Tony doesn’t have any genius ideas to pass along when Obie visits, Tony gets hit and goes hungry.

"You think you're going to live here for free?" Obie demands, late one night, while Tony huddles against the wall, arms wrapped around himself. This beating had been a bad one, even by Tony's standards. Tony's pretty sure his rib is cracked and Obie sounds _so_ angry. 

Tony shakes his head urgently. "No, sir. I just-- I don't know all this math. I know a lot but I need to know more. If I could have some books... I could learn. I could teach myself."

"I always knew you weren't half as smart as Howard thought," Obie scoffed.

The books never come, and Tony exhausts himself trying to put together doctorate level math concepts all on his own. At least it gives him something to focus on during the day. At night, when he lays alone in his cell, he thinks about Steve sometimes. Thinks about their last conversation and the things that they’d said to each other. Obie tells Tony that everyone thinks he died in the car crash with his parents and Jarvis. That there was a big fire and no one bothered to identify the bones because it was just a well-known fact that the four of them were all in the car.

Tony wonders if Steve cried at his funeral. He likes to imagine that he did, and that Bucky did, too.

That’s easier to think about than his dead family.

**\--- A New Year ---**

Obie brings down a new prisoner. The man’s name is Yinsen and Tony’s shy around him at first, but Yinsen is very kind and he helps Tony with his designs so now Tony always has good ideas.

They talk about everything. About their families and their old lives. Yinsen tutors Tony in math and physics and chemistry. Catches him up well beyond college level, and Tony is relieved to no longer fail Obie quite so often. Tony gets more food and he gets hit a lot less.

That year isn’t so bad. They work on a lot of escape plans in their spare time. The best one is a suit. A suit of armor that could bust them right out. They’re halfway through the first prototype when Yinsen gets sick.

“I think maybe you'll be leaving this place alone,” he tells Tony, after a week of barely being able to move. "But you must promise when you get the chance you will go. Promise me."

Tony promises. He also begs Obie for help, but that proves fruitless. Obie won’t help. Obie won’t send medicine. His only concern is that Tony could get sick and so he moves Tony to a different cell. A less secure cell.

Tony sees a chance to escape and he takes it. He’s got enough equipment on him to build a bomb and he kills the two guards tasked with keeping him imprisoned and he makes a run for it through the underground facility. He tries to double back through the winding passageways for Yinsen, and stumbles across a supply closet full of cleaning chemicals and a tool box full of all kinds of tiny metal parts. It’s perfect.

Tony makes a few more bombs. One of them is packed full of nails and tacks and he doesn’t feel even a little bad when he turns it on the men stationed between him and Yinsen.

Except for a rescue mission, it’s too late. When Tony gets inside his old cell and lab, his friend is on the cot. Dead.

Tony grabs what he cans, straps as much of the prototype suit to himself as will fit and takes off for the door. He couldn’t save Yinsen but he owes it to the man, and all of their dreams, to save himself.

It’s a rough fight. The suit doesn’t protect him entirely and Tony ends up badly hurt by the time he makes it above ground. Everyone beneath him is now dead and buried. He doesn’t spare anyone but Yinsen a sad thought.

He wanders for an hour, maybe two, when there’s a huge explosion behind him. Far enough away that it must have been the lab, remote detonated, to destroy all evidence of anything that ever happened there.

That’s smart. It’s a good strategy. It also attracts attention.

Tony’s in too much pain to keep his eyes open as hands pull him up out of the sand.

**\--- Another Year ---**

Once Tony gets past the creepiness of the guy’s red skull, Red Skull isn’t so bad.

He’s better than Obie.

Tony has the run of his new home, and Red Skull lets him have access to the outside world. To the internet, in return for a promise that Tony won’t communicate with anyone. And Tony’s fine with that arrangement because Red Skull also promises him something better.

Revenge.

If Tony promises him 5 years of research and development with his organization (It’s a science group called Hydra. Tony’s never heard of it.) then Red Skull will help Tony take back Stark Industries from Obie. And not just take it back. Ruin the man’s life. Ruin his _everything_.

Red Skull gives Tony proof that Obie killed his parents. He provides Tony with all the materials it takes to design and test a suit that will bring all of his and Yinsen’s plans to life. And he gives Tony something else, too. Company.

Tony finds the twins while he’s testing his armor. Red Skull had given him the coordinates of some bad people who have split off and betrayed Hydra, and while Tony is blowing up the bad base, he finds Wanda and Pietro locked in cells. They’re small. Hungry.

And they’re special. Kind of like how Steve turned special after the goo, only even more so.

He can’t leave them locked away, and he’s destroying the whole place anyway, so he sets them free and promises to help them if they’ll come back with him back to Red Skull’s base. They do, and Red Skull is extremely pleased.

Tony likes Wanda and Pietro a lot. They’re 13 and he’s 20, and the age difference makes him more of an older brother than a friend. Family is really what he’s always wanted, so this works out well. As the months pass, and then a year, that’s exactly what they are.

The three of them have their own apartment on the Hydra base. It feels more like home than anywhere Tony can remember.

Red Skull comes by a lot more often, with instructors and tutors and trainers. The only rule he gives them is that for all their safety, Wanda is not allowed to look into the minds around her. Too many secrets could be tortured out of her later, if anyone learned of her abilities. Wanda wants nothing more than to please her new family, so she readily agrees.

It helps that Wanda and Pietro are also looking for their own revenge against Obie (he sold some weapons that killed their parents) so they and Tony have matching goals and that makes them close.

During all this time, Tony only ever keeps one connection to the outside world. He stalks Steve Rogers through technology on a regular basis.

Steve had been class Valedictorian. Tony finds a video of him giving his speech and in the very first words, Steve dedicates it to Tony’s memory. He talks about how that fire changed his life even more than the truck accident had. How losing Tony had made him want to help people. To improve the world. To join the military.

And from all indications online he had.

His records are a little odd. Different from other military records. Tony runs into a lot of redacted information, and he _could_ hack through it, but he never does, because he doesn’t want to displease Red Skull.

When Tony had nothing, he was the one who saved him. He’s the one who gave Tony a family and a place to be safe. And he’s the one who will give Tony his revenge.

**\--- Three Years Later ---**

“It’s time,” Red Skull insists.

They’re in New York. The trap has been set. Tony needs to legitimately gain access to his father’s company before they do anything to Obie. That’s part of the plan. That’s part of Obie’s punishment.

It doesn’t mean Tony’s ready.

He likes his Hydra apartment and he’d enjoyed living out of the world. That’s where he’d really and truly grown up. That’s where he’d finally enjoyed a growth spurt and where he’d trained with Hydra’s best until he was as physically capable as any Hydra Agent. That’s where he’d built and tested and perfected his Iron Man suit.

That was where he’d met his family.

Now Wanda, Pietro and Tony were going to be on their own.

Hydra had attorneys on retainer, and it’s one of those attorneys that waits by Red Skull for Tony.

“We’ve practiced this,” the lawyer reminds him. “I’m going to drive you three to the police station and you’ll say exactly what we rehearsed. Obie killed your parents, kidnapped you, kept you hidden, kept the twins hidden, and the three of you escaped last month. No mention of Hydra. You understand right?”

“I’ve got it,” Tony says.

He does. He’s not stupid and they’ve had lots of training in espionage and deception at this point. It’s not the lies they need to tell that make him nervous. It’s the part where they are going to try and act like three normal people living three normal lives.

Thankfully, everything goes according to plan. Obadiah is arrested within the hour. Tony’s DNA test proves that he is who he says he is a few hours after that. Bank accounts are turned over, a board meeting is called, and Tony is hailed as a hero.

A hero for what, he’s not sure.

Tony’s a natural businessman at least and since his lie involves explaining he was never really _not_ a part of Stark Industries, he’s made CEO with very little fuss. If nothing else, the company stocks rise wildly. Tony’s able to present idea after idea that he worked through while with Hydra and they’re the sorts of world changing inventions that are going to make Stark Industries a whole lot of money.

Wanda and Pietro settle in well. They like New York. They’re still minors so Tony is able to legally adopt them. During the day they have tutors and chauffeurs and enjoy the city while Tony works. In the evenings they spend every second together, staring out the windows of their high rise apartment, cooking meals together and watching them as they sit on the couch watching movies.

Tony’s still more of an older brother than a parent, despite the legal status of his guardianship. It doesn’t stop Pietro from calling him ‘dad’ just to be obnoxious.

“Dad-- tell Wanda to stop being such a couch hog,” Pietro complains when his sister tucks her feet up to the side and dares to cross the line of his cushion.

“Dad-- she’s eating all the popcorn,” he adds, when their bowl ends up empty.

“Dad--”

“You know if I was actually your dad, I’d be able to ground you for tattling, right?” Tony teases.

“You’d be grounding the wrong twin,” Pietro says seriously. “That one is the menace.”

Wanda gives a wave of her hand and the popcorn bowl goes flying. Pietro is faster and he manages to catch the bowl and have a new bag in the microwave to be popped before Tony’s eyes catch up.

“You’re both menaces,” Tony insists. “Menacae? Meneece? Jarvis what’s the plural on that?”

“You had it right the first time, sir,” a voice says through the speakers in the ceiling.

That was how Tony had completed his family. A Jarvis AI, and now he’ll never be alone.

Life is finally good.

**\--- New Year ---**

It happens at Stark Industries New Year’s Eve party. Tony and the twins are the guests of honor and Hydra intel has already figured out a few different government agencies are going to have plants at the party.

When Tony spots a familiar face in the crowd, all those redacted government files make a whole lot more sense.

Steve’s smile is something else.

Tony doesn’t expect the hug, or to be lifted in the air. He’s not tiny anymore, but Steve picks him up like he’s a twig.

“It really is you,” Steve says, his voice full of awe and maybe a little sadness. “I heard on the news but I was afraid to let myself believe it.”

“It’s me,” Tony says quietly. 

Wanda and Pietro appear at his side. They don’t look nearly as happy about this reunion as Tony is. Mostly because they have no idea who this is picking up their brother. And Hydra’s warnings were clear. Anyone from the other side was a danger.

“Steve-- this is my adopted sister Wanda, and my brother Pietro. Guys, this is Steve. My friend.”

They’ve heard plenty of stories about Steve. So many stories. And now they look a little in awe to meet him.

“I didn’t have that many people to talk about,” Tony explains a little shyly. “They’ve heard all the stories.”

Steve frowns slightly at that. “There’s one story I wish no one had to hear. Tony-- I am so sorry--”

“Steve it was years ago. You don’t need to--”

“Yes, I do,” Steve says. “Please let me do this. I’ve replayed that afternoon so many times. And I-- I would think about what I would say if I could ever talk to you again, even for a minute.”

Tony relents. Steve seems so desperately sorry. Maybe he _isn’t_ one of the agency spies that Hydra had warned about. Maybe he’s here just because he wants to be here.

“Okay,” Tony agrees.

“I should have been the one to tell Brock to fuck off. I should have defended you. I should have skipped the game and gone after you. Or begged you to come. Then you would have been there and not-- not where you were.”

“You can’t blame yourself,” Tony insists. “It was Obie’s fault and now he’s in jail and justice is going to come his way.”

“Justice has already come his way,” says the woman who walks up behind Steve.

She’s pretty, with red hair, and a silky voice. Her smile is sweet and clever and she wraps her arm around Steve’s waist.

“Right,” Tony agrees. “Isn’t that what I said?”

“You said he has it coming,” she corrects. “Easy mistake to make. I’m sure it’s a highly emotional situation.”

“It is,” Steve agrees.

His voice is a little cold to her, if she’s his date. 

It’s less cold if Tony considers the very real possibility that this woman is the spy they were warned about.

“Natasha, now isn’t a good time,” Steve adds.

She shrugs. “Tony Stark?” she asks, holding out her hand to him.

“I am,” Tony agrees. “And this is my sister Wanda and my brother Pietro.”

The twins regard her with equal suspicion. Tony can feel it coming off of them in waves. Suddenly Wanda tenses.

“I’m not feeling well,” she says carefully. “I think maybe I shouldn’t have snuck some wine.”

Tony glances to her and nods. “I warned you about that. If you’ll excuse us?”

“Wait,” Steve says. “Can I have your phone number? Or even just your email address. I’d like to catch up.”

Tony looks toward Wanda again. She gives Tony the slightest of nods. Whatever she’s seen in Steve’s head seems to be fine. He grabs a napkin off a passing tray and Natasha hands him a pen from her clutch. Tony writes down his phone number and hands it to Steve.

He calls the next morning.

**\---**

Wanda’s powers can be a little sporadic when she needs to keep the red glow out of sight, but she definitely picked up that Natasha was some sort of government agent though Steve’s intentions did seem pure.

Which meant Tony didn’t have to feel bad agreeing to meet him in the park at lunch.

“How are you settling in?” Steve asks.

“It’s weird,” Tony says. “But we can get pizza delivered any time we want, so that’s a plus.”

“You’ve all adjusted incredibly well,” Steve continues. “It sounded like from the court testimony you were pretty isolated.”

“We had each other,” Tony says, and it’s the truth. Sort of. Not the part where Steve believes they were in Obie’s possession the whole time, but the part where he and Wanda and Pietro were inseparable.

It’s hard having a conversation full of half truths but it is a necessity. Steve can’t know the truth. No one can know the truth.

They are so close to their revenge.

Thankfully Steve turns the conversations to far more cheerful topics and they spend the rest of Tony’s lunch break smiling and laughing and it almost _almost_ feels like old times.

“We should do this again sometime,” Steve says.

“Soon,” Tony promises. 

**\--- The Next Day ---**

Blowing up the prison is almost laughably easy. They find Obadiah with the help of a well placed Hydra guard and once Tony and Wanda and Pietro have access to him, they make him suffer.

It’s everything they’d ever dreamed it would be.

Tony’s heard of the Avengers, and seen them on the internet, but it’s another thing entirely to meet them in person. Especially when he and (the well-masked and costumed) twins are covered in their enemy’s blood.

“STOP!” a loud voice calls out to them, right as a red, white and blue shield nearly collides with Tony’s chest. “You don’t want to do this.”

Tony’s in the suit, so really he can do what he wants. The shield wouldn’t have even hurt, likely, but Tony doesn’t get the chance to find out because Wanda stops it before it hits him. Pietro grabs it out of the air and gives it a swing of his own. It collides with Captain America in the split of an eye and the man goes tumbling backwards.

The rest of the Avengers are as easily dealt with as their leader. Probably because the Avengers have never faced anyone nearly as well-trained and gifted as Tony and the twins.

Once all the Avengers are down they pause. Tony and Wanda and Pietro only wanted to kill Obie, so they’ve been careful not to kill the superheroes. 

Tony turns back to Obie who is gurgling on his own blood. He raises a hand and aims his energy beam.

“You should have let me die with my parents,” he growls, and then slices Obie in two.

They’re gone before the Avengers have enough strength to get upright.

**\--- The Next Day ---**

Red Skull comes for breakfast. As weird as his red skull was in the beginning it’s even weirder now, to see him with his skin mask on.

“I’m so proud of you, children,” he praises them. “You have done me proud. You have done Hydra proud.”

Tony smiles. Wanda and Pietro are both smiling, too.

In some ways, Red Skull is the closest thing any of the three of them have had to a father in a long time.

“Now that you’ve had your revenge I have a new proposition to make for you. A new wrong that needs righted.”

“Whatever you want,” Tony agrees.

“The Avengers. You let them live,” Red Skull says.

“They weren’t our target,” Tony points out.

“And they weren’t much of a match for us,” Pietro points out.

“Our intelligence officers tell us Hydra is their next target. They are a corrupt group. They work for a corrupt government and if they find us, they will kill us. They will kill _me_. Those are their orders.”

Tony’s mouth opens slightly in surprise. “You’re sure?”

“I am certain,” Red Skull says. “This is why I am here. To ask for your help, my children. To ask you to destroy the Avengers before they are able to complete their mission.”

“Of course,” Tony says. “We won’t let them hurt you.”

“I knew you would not,” Red Skull says.

He pats Tony on the shoulder, then does the same to each twin.

“Hail Hydra,” he says in parting.

“We won't fail you,” they repeat together.

 

**\--- One Month Later ---**

Preparing to kill the Avengers is different than preparing to fight them. They watch youtube videos and scour the net for information on their strengths and weaknesses. There are all kinds of rumors that a few additional superheroes have been seen around the city.

The Hulk. Thor. Wasp. Names Tony only ever read about in newspaper articles. Now he’s going to face them. They’re going to face them all. And they’re going to kill them.

Tony doesn’t feel right about it. Neither do Wanda or Pietro. They don’t say as much but Tony knows them well enough to tell.

It’s nothing to do with being nervous. With all the might of Hydra behind them how can they lose? No, it’s the innocent lives. This isn’t revenge, this is proactive warfare. And something about it feels wrong.

They have to protect Red Skull though. What else can they do?

**\---One Day Later---**

They fight in Central Park. It’s not the ideal location but that’s where it happens. At least it gives any civilians plenty of cover and a lot of escape routes. Even with the heavy hitters in play, Tony and the twins are the better team. They’ve worked together longer. With Wanda their defense is their strength. With Pietro as long as he keeps moving he’s an impossible target. And Tony’s brought the big guns.

He’s the leader of his family so it only makes sense he’s the one squaring off with Captain America. If Pietro had stayed on the other side of the park, leading away Hulk like he was supposed to, things might have ended very differently. But Pietro could be a little shit sometimes, and against Tony's orders he raced into the middle of Tony’s fight and gave Cap’s mask a pull.

Just a tug, but at his top speed it was enough to yank the whole cowl clean off.

Which left Tony staring at Steve Rogers.

Damn it.

“Abort!” Tony called into his comms. “Now. Abort! Regroup at the house. No questions.”

No doubt the Avengers would spend the rest of their day debating why a group of supervillains who were winning a fight up and left mid-battle. It made no sense. Except that to Tony it made all these sense in the world.

Steve wasn’t just a government agent. Steve was _the_ government agent. Captain America. What the hell?

Thankfully Wanda and Pietro weren’t upset with him. He explained as soon as they were all safely in their apartment, and once they could see how bad Tony felt they went straight into sibling mode.

Tony was sat on the couch, and Pietro brought him a blanket while Wanda fetched him a bowl of ice cream.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Wanda asks.

“Do you want to blow something up?” Pietro offers.

“I want more ice cream,” Tony says. “The kind with the caramel swirls.”

Wanda looks at Pietro. “That we can do.”

**\--- The Next Day ---**

Tony’s phone rings at breakfast. It’s Steve.

“I’m really sorry to bother you,” Steve says. “We’re-- I’m-- in kind of a bind with my job and I could use a weapons expert’s eye on something. Any chance I could see you at lunch?”

“It’s a trap,” Pietro mouths, because he’s close enough to hear the words.

Wanda gives a half-hearted nod over her cereal.

“Lunch is good,” Tony agrees.

He hangs up before he can change his mind.

“We’re coming with you,” Pietro insists.

“I wouldn’t go without you,” Tony agrees. “Just... don’t interfere. Let me see what he wants first.”

To that, they agree,

It turns out, Steve doesn’t suspect a thing. Or if he does he keeps it to himself. If anything, the things he reveals to Tony are way more damning for him.

“Not many people know this,” Steve says. “But I know I can trust you. You’ve heard of Captain America?”

Steve looks over at where Pietro and Wanda are throwing a Frisbee back and forth in the sun. They don’t appear to be listening.

“Yeah, I’m all caught up on current events,” Tony agrees.

“Well. He’s… me. I’m Captain America.”

“You’re what?” Tony asks, feigning confusion. “ _The_ Captain America? With the shield and the crime fighting?”

All his Hydra spy training is coming in handy. He knows he does seem genuinely surprised. Partly because he is incredibly genuinely surprised Steve is sharing this news with him now.

“ _The_ Captain America,” Steve agrees. “Do you remember a man name Nick Fury? He came to our school once for career day. Tall? Bald? Eye patch?”

“Right,” Tony agrees. “I do remember. Wasn’t he a postman?”

“Not exactly,” Steve says. “He’s the head of a group called SHIELD. He heard my valedictorian speech about wanting to make the world a better place and he approached me with some thoughts on how I could make it happen. And that’s what I’m trying to do. All because of you.”

“Because of me?” Tony asks.

“I let you down, Tony. I-- couldn’t forgive myself. Saving people. That’s my pennance. And now there’s some new villains in town and I don’t know what to make of them. They… well, let me show you.”

Steve shows Tony footage of the fight from the previous day.

“What am I looking for here?” Tony asks.

“Why this guy stops the fight,” Steve says.

He points at Tony in the Iron Man suit.

“Just by looking, can you tell if something went wrong? If maybe I hit him somewhere that disrupted his weaponry? I was wide open there. He could have taken a kill shot and he didn’t.”

“It looks fine to me,” Tony says. “Maybe he just didn’t want to kill you.”

“He was fighting like he wanted me dead right up to that point,” Steve says.

“Maybe he saw your face and thought twice about ridding the world of those blue eyes,” Tony says.

Steve elbows him playfully. “Now you’re just being mean.”

“I’m not being mean,” Tony objects. “I’m being serious. You got pretty with age, Rogers. It’s weird.”

“Not as weird as a powerful super villain calling things off mid-fight. You’re sure you don’t see anything? I want to know how to disable him if he comes back. I don’t want to kill him in the process. We don’t want to kill _any_ of them in the fight. You wouldn’t believe how young they seem.”

“You aren’t exactly old,” Tony points out.

Steve sighs. “They’re younger. And possibly brain-washed. They’re with a group called Hydra and that’s what they do. Kidnap kids. Train them while they’re young, then release them as assassins and criminals.”

“That sounds--” Tony’s about to snap at Steve and then remembers his training and thinks better of it. “That sounds terrible,” he fixes. “After what I went through with Obie… I know a little about being kidnapped. I don’t like to think it would ever be as bad for anyone else.”

“Well, they clearly had a vendetta against him on your behalf,” Steve says. “I’m assuming you heard that news.”

“That there was a prison riot and he was killed?” Tony asks. That’s the official story that ran in the papers.

“They killed him,” Steve says. “Executed him.”

“And you want to know why they didn’t do that to you?” Tony asks.

Steve nods. “I think there’s good in them. I think maybe they’re scared. Confused. Controlled.”

“I think maybe there’s something wrong with his suit, right here,” Tony lies. He points at an area of the suit that has always bothered him a little. A hitch in the lines of armor. It has always been there but it’s not all that noticeable unless it’s pointed out. “If I was designing something like this that’s where I’d put the fire suppression system and life support. Could you have hit him there with your shield?”

“Things were bouncing around all over the place,” Steve sighs. “But maybe.”

“Here-- Let me get one more look,” Tony says.

Steve hands over his phone entirely and Tony discreetly slides in a tiny microchip through the headphone jack. If this phone is attached to SHIELD’s servers Tony’s going to be getting a lot more answers of his own soon.

He hands the phone back.

“Can I call you again, sometime?” Steve asks. “For something less official?”

“I’d like that,” Tony agrees. “Sorry I can’t do more.”

And in a lot of ways he is.

**\--- Back at the Apartment ---**

“Could you hear him?” Tony asks.

“We heard enough,” Pietro says.

They’re all three on the couch. All three confused.

“He believes what he says is true,” Wanda says. “That doesn’t mean he’s right but he was not attempting to deceive you. He wants to help the three people he fought. He believes there’s hope for us yet.”

“I thought we were the good guys,” Pietro complains.

“We stopped being the good guys when we murdered Obie,” Tony says. “I’d do it again, that’s not something I would take back. We just can’t really claim the moral high-ground here.”

“So who is right?” Wanda asks. “Are we brainwashed?”

“Would we know it if we are?” Pietro adds.

“That’s what I’m hoping we can find out,” Tony says. “With this.”

He shows them the data stream downloading to his private servers. “It’s everything SHIELD’s got. If they know something we don’t, we’ll be caught up soon enough.”

“We can’t stay here,” Wanda says. “Not until we know.”

She looks at Pietro and he simply nods, turns into a blur, and five seconds later reappears with three duffel bags. Tony laughs and gives him a pat on the shoulder.

“Thanks.”

**\--- An Undisclosed Hotel, 4 Hours Later ---**

The evidence is damning. Jarvis helps Tony sort through it and wow.

Hydra is bad.

Hydra is so bad.

Wanda’s in tears. Pietro is pacing. Tony’s got his head in his hands.

Hydra. Is. So. Bad.

“What have we done?” Wanda asks.

“Nothing we can’t undo,” Tony says. “It’s only been Obie so far and I think… I think I have a plan.”

He reaches for his phone and dials the only number in his contact list he can still trust.

“Hello?”

“Steve,” Tony says. “We need to talk.”

**\--- The Next Day ---**

Steve meets them at their hotel. Tony had only told him that they needed to talk, and that he no longer felt safe at home, and Steve hadn't asked for further explanation. Tony almost wishes he’s confessed everything on the phone. It’s a hundred times more difficult to get the words out face to face.

They’re in a large suite, sitting on a plush sofa, all four of them. Tony doesn't want to leave Wanda and Pietro out of this.

They got into this together, and they’ll get out that way.

Tony starts at the beginning-- the day his parents died-- and he forces himself to continue until he reaches the end. He expects yelling. He expects Steve to insist they call the police. He’s expecting disappointment.

He does not expect Steve to reach for his hands and hold them. He definitely doesn't expect the compassion he sees in Steve’s eyes.

“If you need to arrest me I understand,” Tony says. “But Wanda and Pietro-- they were only doing what I told them. I would agree to any conditions if you’ll leave them out of this.”

“No,” Wanda protested. “No. We’re not children. We understood what we were doing.”

“If you arrest Tony you’re going to have to arrest us too. And I’m not sure you’re quick enough for that,” Pietro warns.

“I'm not arresting anybody,” Steve says. “Yes, you killed Obadiah Stane. I'm not going to cry over that man. He kidnapped you. He tortured you. You shouldn’t murder people but that-- that’s something we’ll figure out later. We need a plan for now. If you want to go-- disappear-- I can help you with that. If you want to stay. Fight with the Avengers to take down Hydra. I can help you with that, too. Whatever you want, we can make it happen.”

Tony can barely believe what he’s hearing.

“How?” he asks.

Steve doesn't need to think about it before he answers. “Together.”

 **\---**  
With Tony and the twins knowledge of Hydra operations it isn’t difficult to track down Red Skull. Fighting him is a different story. 

“Stand down,” Tony warns him. “We don’t want to have to hurt you.”

“My own creations. Turned against me,” Red Skull says. “My children. You’ll betray me for Captain America?”

“It has nothing to do with him,” Tony says. “You lied to us. About who you are. About what Hydra is.”

“How did I lie?” Red Skull asks. His eyes shift to the side and Tony realizes he’s stalling. It’s a technique they’ve all learned.

“Wanda. He’s planning something,” Tony says, cutting out the speaker so the words only go to the comms.

“I know,” Wanda says. “I’m reading him. For the first time… I see it all. Tony-- he must be stopped.”

“Last chance, dad,” Tony says to Red Skull. He lifts his hands. Aims his blasters.

“I was never your father,” Red Skull taunts. “You were never anything to me but a means to an end. And now that you are no longer of use, you are disposable. _Trash._ ”

That stings. More than Tony’d like to admit, the words hurt. He doesn't have time to dwell on them, though.

The blast comes from nowhere and everywhere. It’s electromagnetic. Tony recognizes it as a weapon of his own making. He can’t dodge it, but Wanda manages to contain it. Tony swoops low. It’s time to end this. End it all.

The world around him turns to chaos. The Avengers are fighting and his brother and sister are, too. Steve’s focused on Red Skull and Tony joins him. Red Skull has weapon after weapon at his disposal, and they’re all Tony’s fault. Tony’s genius, turned against the people he loves. He fights harder. And when he sees the sacrifice play, he takes it. A blast meant for Steve-- a blast that would kill Steve-- and Tony catches it with the suit.

He hits the ground hard and fast. The last thing he sees before he blacks out is an all-encompassing flash of violent red light.

**\---**

“He’s waking up.”

Tony feels a soft hand on his forehead. His sister sounds worried.

“M’fine,” Tony mumbles. Or he will be fine, once he can open his eyes.

Firmer hands reach down to adjust how he’s laying on the pillow. Tony lets out a pained sigh as he finally blinks awake. All four of them are on one bed. Wanda’s on one side, Steve’s on the other, and Pietro is down by his feet.

“What happened?” he asks.

“You hit the ground and Wanda tore them apart!” Pietro answers enthusiastically.

Wanda make a soft sound of protest and Tony reaches for her hand.

“Thank you for finishing it,” he says quietly.

“We all finished it,” Wanda says. “Red Skull is dead. Obadiah Stane is dead. We can be done.”

“We can have real lives,” Pietro agrees. “Go to college. Make friends.”

“I don’t want to leave Tony,” Wanda says.

“Why would we leave Tony?” Pietro asks. “We’ll go to school here. We’ll make friends in New York. We’ll all live together.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Tony says. He’s still in pain and he can’t keep it out of his voice.

“Do you think you could swallow a few pain pills?” Steve asks him.

Tony nods. “Hey, guys. Can you give me and Steve a few minutes alone?”

Wanda leans down and kisses Tony on the forehead. Pietro hops off the bed, and walks up far enough around that he can lean down and do the same. They leave the room and pull the door closed behind him.

“Thank you,” Tony says, as Steve helps him sit up and then hands him the pills. Tony takes them, along with a sip of water, and then allows Steve to ease him back down onto his back.

“I thought I lost you. Again,” Steve says. “And I couldn’t-- I couldn’t move. Wanda did her thing and the rest of the team took over. I have loved you _forever_. And I can’t wait another second to tell you that. I’m sorry this isn’t a good time--”

“It’s the perfect time,” Tony interrupts. “I love you too. I have. For forever.”

“Then it works out great,” Steve says with a small smile. He takes Tony’s hand into his own. “Like Wanda and Pietro said-- it’s time to start living.”

“Are you going to give up being Captain America?” Tony asks.

“That depends,” Steve says. “Your suit is ruined. There were news crews nearby who got some of the fight on film. Whoever that was. The person in the suit. According to all records and eyewitnesses, he’s dead. But-- what if the brilliant inventor, Tony Stark got a look at that suit and made one of his own. Similar but not the same. And he used it to fight for good? Used it to have my back? Because then I would be Captain America. But if you want to give all this up, I’ll lay down the shield. It’s as simple as that.”

Tony considers it. “What would the rest of your team say to that?”

“When I told you that I could get you all someplace safe, the someplace safe was our training facility. The rest of the Avengers know exactly what it means to be unmade. To be turned into a weapon against their will. To be used. If you’ll have us, we will be more than happy to have you. All three of you, depending on what Wanda and Pietro want.”

“And what about what we did to Obadiah?” Tony asks. He really can’t let that one go. He hated the man but he still feels ashamed when thinks about what they’ve done.

“You can’t undo it,” Steve says gently. “But you can choose not to let it define you. You can be good. You can _do_ good. And I’ll be right there beside you.”

“You really think I can be good?” Tony asks.

“I think you can be golden.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated!


End file.
